On the way to soccer today my 7 year old son asked if we could make ratatouille. Can you imagine how thrilled I was to hear this? My immediate reply was "YES! Absolutely! Let's make ratatouille!" "Wait", he said. (If mom is this excited about ratatouille, it must be a) gross or b) good for me) "What is ratatouille?", he asked.
Ratatouille is French comfort food at it's best. A dish originating from Provence, Ratatouille has many variations but is consistently a gardners dream meal, combining delicious summer crops, eggplant, zucchini, red sweet peppers, onions, garlic, and tomatoes. Chop and cook in olive oil with salt and pepper. Ratatouille can be served hot or cold, on pasta, with an omelette, or eaten straight out of the pan.
I have two favorite food memories involving ratatouille. In the early 90's I used to meet a friend for lunch at this great cafe in Westchester, CA. I can't remember the name of the place for the life of me and it closed long ago. Without fail, I would order the ratatouille omelette. I don't remember if the ratatouille tasted exceptional but the combination of conversation with my friend and the deliciousness of the ratatouille provided me comfort and imprinted on my stomach, heart and brain.
My other ratatouille memory is from Paris, 2008. I was the last to sign on to a group of 5 women, family and friends, to go to Paris in May to celebrate my mother-in-laws' 75th birthday. Due to a series of unfortunate events, the 5 ladies rescheduled their trip for late June. With the kids schedules and added costs to change the trip, I couldn't make the change and decided to stick with the plan, and go to Paris - solo. I had just had back-to-back surgeries in November and January, to remove my appendix and major surgery removing a cancerous tumor that chopped off 1/3 of my large intestine and reworked my plumbing. I was thankful to be alive and ready and in need of a vacation! I changed the accomodations to better suit single travel and went on my trip. [Let's just insert here that I have the greatest husband ever for allowing and loving me to leave him for 10 days with the 4 kids]. I had many memorable and fabulous meals in Paris and surrounding areas, but one of my favorites was in a small cafe near the Musee D'Orsay that I stopped in to avoid the downpour of rain that appeared out of nowhere. My intention was not to eat but when I walked in, the air was filled with the smell of simmering tomatoes, garlic and deliciousness. On the board, the plat du jour was simply, ratatouille. I sat and stayed awhile. Enjoying the ratatouille, the freshness of the vegetables, the ambience of the cafe, and the company of four women from Toronto I met at a nearby table. Sharing this memory reminds me of the aroma that I can almost smell.
This is the first summer in many that I haven't grown eggplant. I simply forgot about it and the simple comfort and pleasure of ratatouille. Next year, for sure, I'll plant an eggplant plant or two. Until then, I'm running to the store to buy an eggplant and make ratatouille before my son changes his mind.
"Oh", said my son after I told him about ratatouille. "That's funny, I don't remember eggplant in the movie."
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Oh For the Love of Cod
From prior posts you know that I only buy wild fish, no farm raised fish for me. 'Color added' freaks me out. I'm not a fan of red velvet cake either for the same reason. My husbands' cousins are shrimp farmers in Mexico (this is a great story for another day) and we've had conversations on why fish and shrimp farming are good. I get it, I understand sustainability. I understand that fish farming is good business, it just isn't for me.
A friend recently questioned my stance on farm raised fish and brought up tilapia. Blah! She said tilapia is like chicken. Blah! I'm a fish-loving girl. I grew up eating pike, perch and bass from Lake Erie and Lake Michigan and little lakes inbetween. I eat trout, smelt, sardines, sole and squid. But tilapia. No thanks. Tilapia is claimed to be the fish Jesus of Nazareth multiplied a thousandfold to feed the masses. Maybe when I'm starving I'll eat it. Until then, I'm excercising my options.
I buy my fish at Santa Monica Seafood, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's or Henry's. A great resource in knowing what to buy is Santa Monica Seafood's Awareness Guide: ,http://www.santamonicaseafood.com/downloads/Seafood-Product-Awareness-Aug2010.pdf This is a 150 page download that I refer to often.
The most versatile fish that often frequents our table is the namesake of this post, Cod. White, meaty and delicious, I use cod in everything from tacos, skewers, stew or a good fish fry. Delicious. Because it is a fatty fish, it is a forgiving fish. It is difficult to overcook cod. Though I cook it many ways, my family loves (LOVES) Ina Garten's recipe in the Barefoot Contessa Family Style cookbook for Parker's Fish & Chips. With some homemade tartar sauce and coleslaw, this is Oh For the Love of Cod Delicious!
I got to thinking about cod from the Grilled Garlic Lime Fish Tacos recipe in Martha Stewart's Everyday Food Magazine. This is the little 5 x7 magazine found at checkstands or my mailbox. Great easy recipes that my family loves (as opposed to Rachel Ray recipes that they consistently dislike - interesting, I know). I'm going to get some cod and grill up some tacos this weekend!
Yum!
A friend recently questioned my stance on farm raised fish and brought up tilapia. Blah! She said tilapia is like chicken. Blah! I'm a fish-loving girl. I grew up eating pike, perch and bass from Lake Erie and Lake Michigan and little lakes inbetween. I eat trout, smelt, sardines, sole and squid. But tilapia. No thanks. Tilapia is claimed to be the fish Jesus of Nazareth multiplied a thousandfold to feed the masses. Maybe when I'm starving I'll eat it. Until then, I'm excercising my options.
I buy my fish at Santa Monica Seafood, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's or Henry's. A great resource in knowing what to buy is Santa Monica Seafood's Awareness Guide: ,http://www.santamonicaseafood.com/downloads/Seafood-Product-Awareness-Aug2010.pdf This is a 150 page download that I refer to often.
The most versatile fish that often frequents our table is the namesake of this post, Cod. White, meaty and delicious, I use cod in everything from tacos, skewers, stew or a good fish fry. Delicious. Because it is a fatty fish, it is a forgiving fish. It is difficult to overcook cod. Though I cook it many ways, my family loves (LOVES) Ina Garten's recipe in the Barefoot Contessa Family Style cookbook for Parker's Fish & Chips. With some homemade tartar sauce and coleslaw, this is Oh For the Love of Cod Delicious!
I got to thinking about cod from the Grilled Garlic Lime Fish Tacos recipe in Martha Stewart's Everyday Food Magazine. This is the little 5 x7 magazine found at checkstands or my mailbox. Great easy recipes that my family loves (as opposed to Rachel Ray recipes that they consistently dislike - interesting, I know). I'm going to get some cod and grill up some tacos this weekend!
Yum!
Monday, May 9, 2011
Confessions from my Pantry
We all have our issues. Some are secret, not visible on the surface. Others, like mine, are obvious. (I love lines that make me laugh from the inside out.) My issue is collecting food. I don't save every last morsel of leftovers wrapped in tin foil like I was raised in the depression...then I would truly be my beloved Mother In Law (aka MIL). My issue results from the love of grocery shopping. I can barely tolerate clothes shopping. Shoe shopping isn't fun because I have an old lady bunion/foot problem that needs to be corrected. As a result, I collect food. I guess this is the byproduct of my affection for recipes, cookbooks and other cookery.
I cleaned out my pantry and freezer this weekend. I saw a moth and freaked. I think it was the oat bran improperly resealed, but not for certain. My pantry is 47" wide, 6' high and 23" deep. Plenty big enough for my collection!
I love my pantry. Now that it's cleaned and straightened, it looks good, it smells good, and it inspires me with its crazy variety of contents. I have 37 spices, not including salt and pepper. I counted them as I restocked the pantry and thought of my friend in Arizona who once told me whenever she made a recipe that called for a spice she didn't have, she skipped it. Yikes! Would you (could you?) make chili without chili powder? I made a list of the ones I know I'm missing and plan to get them soon. I have an herb garden, but I can't grow everything - tumeric, curry, nutmeg...or can I?
Now that I've organzied/reorganzied my collection, I realize that I need to focus my menu this week on what I have stocked up. Take a look at your pantry and freezer and use what you have before adding more on top!
Monday - Meatloaf and baked potatoes and green beans- this is carried over from last week - I never made it and it still sounds good!
Tuesday - Lentil Soup and cornbread - a classic - and a complete protein.
Wednesday - Pasta with tuna, capers and white wine sauce
Thursday - Grilled chicken breast with quinoa, olives & herbs
Friday - In & Out - Flag Football Game and School Carnival
Saturday - Killer Shrimp - this is an awesome combination of flavors, serve in bowls, dip bread in broth
(Killer Shrimp was a fav restaurant in Marina del Rey in the 90's)
2 tbl rosemary
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp fennel seed
2 quarts chicken broth
8 oz clam juice
3 oz tomato paste
1/2 lb butter
2 lbs shrimp or prawns, tails on
French Bread
Sunday - Roast Chicken, potatoes and carrots and most likely, artichokes!
Be inspired.
I cleaned out my pantry and freezer this weekend. I saw a moth and freaked. I think it was the oat bran improperly resealed, but not for certain. My pantry is 47" wide, 6' high and 23" deep. Plenty big enough for my collection!
I love my pantry. Now that it's cleaned and straightened, it looks good, it smells good, and it inspires me with its crazy variety of contents. I have 37 spices, not including salt and pepper. I counted them as I restocked the pantry and thought of my friend in Arizona who once told me whenever she made a recipe that called for a spice she didn't have, she skipped it. Yikes! Would you (could you?) make chili without chili powder? I made a list of the ones I know I'm missing and plan to get them soon. I have an herb garden, but I can't grow everything - tumeric, curry, nutmeg...or can I?
Now that I've organzied/reorganzied my collection, I realize that I need to focus my menu this week on what I have stocked up. Take a look at your pantry and freezer and use what you have before adding more on top!
Monday - Meatloaf and baked potatoes and green beans- this is carried over from last week - I never made it and it still sounds good!
Tuesday - Lentil Soup and cornbread - a classic - and a complete protein.
Wednesday - Pasta with tuna, capers and white wine sauce
Thursday - Grilled chicken breast with quinoa, olives & herbs
Friday - In & Out - Flag Football Game and School Carnival
Saturday - Killer Shrimp - this is an awesome combination of flavors, serve in bowls, dip bread in broth
(Killer Shrimp was a fav restaurant in Marina del Rey in the 90's)
2 tbl rosemary
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp fennel seed
2 quarts chicken broth
8 oz clam juice
3 oz tomato paste
1/2 lb butter
2 lbs shrimp or prawns, tails on
French Bread
Sunday - Roast Chicken, potatoes and carrots and most likely, artichokes!
Be inspired.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Glass Half Full
I'm a Glass Half Full kind of person. Life gives me lemons, I make lemonade. I have always looked at life's lessons as good character building material. I take life head on, with a plan in place, ready to scrap the plan and punt when necessary.
My menu didn't go according to plan last week. I started good then I had to shuffle - my track star daughter wanted pasta on Thursday to be fueled for Saturday's meet (of course, how did I miss this?). Friday came and my husband was at a 12 hour planning meeting, 6 AM - 6 PM. When he called to say he was on his way home, the kids wanted him to pick up In-N-Out so we had burgers...uh oh...that was Saturdays plan. Saturdays menu was going to pick up where Friday left off but after sitting in the sun all day at the track meet I didn't feel like cooking, let alone eating (you know the feeling - give me a glass of wine and let me go to bed). I picked up Papa Murphy pizza, which is pretty good for $6 2-topping pizza.
As I began the menu for this week, I had stuff left from last week so if you're following my menus, there are repeats....................................................................................................................
Sunday - Shrimp with pesto and fresh tomato (this was Friday nights' fish tacos)
Monday - Burgers and mac salad. My carnivores love burgers so much they would eat them every night.
Tuesday - Flame Broiler on the fly. I have had a rash since Friday...turns out to be shingles. My husband was out mountain biking, one kid had soccer practice and it was freaking hot. Take out was invented for days like these.
Wednesday - Barbecue Chicken and baked potatoes and artichokes (from the garden - I have 25 growing at the moment!)
Thursday - Teriyaki Salmon and rice
Friday - Football game and Track meet - again, food on the fly.
Saturday - Spot Burritos. The Spot is a vegetarian restaurant in Hermosa Beach. They serve a Garden Burrito (steamed veggies, brown rice, beans, cheese) wet with Mexican Sauce (chili powder, onions, water, garlic) topped with sour cream and avocado. We love The Spot and the kids love the burritos.
A note here...my menu planning is to be a guide but it is written in pencil, ready to be erased, shuffled, substituted or changed as necessary. I'm flexible. As much as I love cooking, no tears or broken hearts here if I don't have to prepare a meal.
My favorite recipe of this past week was a Strawberry Tiramisu that I made for dessert on Sunday. It is Bon Appetit's 2006 recipe. The recipe says to let it sit for a minimum of 8 hours so the lady fingers absorb all the fabulousness and get soft, but it really needs to be overnight. This recipe makes a 9 x 13 which is a LOT of tiramisu. It was my food therapy while I coped with the misery of shingles.
Have a good week!
My menu didn't go according to plan last week. I started good then I had to shuffle - my track star daughter wanted pasta on Thursday to be fueled for Saturday's meet (of course, how did I miss this?). Friday came and my husband was at a 12 hour planning meeting, 6 AM - 6 PM. When he called to say he was on his way home, the kids wanted him to pick up In-N-Out so we had burgers...uh oh...that was Saturdays plan. Saturdays menu was going to pick up where Friday left off but after sitting in the sun all day at the track meet I didn't feel like cooking, let alone eating (you know the feeling - give me a glass of wine and let me go to bed). I picked up Papa Murphy pizza, which is pretty good for $6 2-topping pizza.
As I began the menu for this week, I had stuff left from last week so if you're following my menus, there are repeats....................................................................................................................
Sunday - Shrimp with pesto and fresh tomato (this was Friday nights' fish tacos)
Monday - Burgers and mac salad. My carnivores love burgers so much they would eat them every night.
Tuesday - Flame Broiler on the fly. I have had a rash since Friday...turns out to be shingles. My husband was out mountain biking, one kid had soccer practice and it was freaking hot. Take out was invented for days like these.
Wednesday - Barbecue Chicken and baked potatoes and artichokes (from the garden - I have 25 growing at the moment!)
Thursday - Teriyaki Salmon and rice
Friday - Football game and Track meet - again, food on the fly.
Saturday - Spot Burritos. The Spot is a vegetarian restaurant in Hermosa Beach. They serve a Garden Burrito (steamed veggies, brown rice, beans, cheese) wet with Mexican Sauce (chili powder, onions, water, garlic) topped with sour cream and avocado. We love The Spot and the kids love the burritos.
A note here...my menu planning is to be a guide but it is written in pencil, ready to be erased, shuffled, substituted or changed as necessary. I'm flexible. As much as I love cooking, no tears or broken hearts here if I don't have to prepare a meal.
My favorite recipe of this past week was a Strawberry Tiramisu that I made for dessert on Sunday. It is Bon Appetit's 2006 recipe. The recipe says to let it sit for a minimum of 8 hours so the lady fingers absorb all the fabulousness and get soft, but it really needs to be overnight. This recipe makes a 9 x 13 which is a LOT of tiramisu. It was my food therapy while I coped with the misery of shingles.
Have a good week!
Monday, April 25, 2011
Back to Basics
Spring Break was eventful - started with tent camping complete with cooking over a pit fire and s'mores (of course) and ended ended the week with a beautiful Easter with family - I made the complete Greek Easter published in Bon Appetit's April 2011 - zucchini keftedes (soooooo good!), stuffed grape leaves, grilled octopus with gigante beans, lamb chops (delicious!), lemon roasted potatoes and baklava. Fabulous!
Time to get back to basics. Break out the formula and plan the menu.
Here is my plan for the coming week. I'll do my best to post my menus weekly.
Nothing fancy but nothing short of delicious. Enjoy!
Sunday: Greek Easter Bon Appetit April 2011 + a spinach, feta, red onion and strawberry salad with basalmic vinagrette (delicious!) and Pastierra - a traditional Italian Wheatberry Ricotta Custard Pie
Monday: Lentil Soup with Cornbread and Arugula Salad with Lemon/Olive Oil dressing
Tuesday: Lemon Garlic Grilled Chicken with Brown Rice and Artichokes (from the garden)
Wednesday: Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs
Thursday: Ham and Yams, cabbage salad
Friday: Shrimp Tacos
Saturday: Hamburgers
On my Soap Box:
I'm an avid organic gardener. I have a 300 s.f. vegetable garden and I worm compost. I like dirt. I like good bugs. I love preparing meals from my garden. With this said, I have waged war against garden slugs, one beer at a time. Slugs mowed down so much of my garden this past week. Fortunately they love beer, I love slugs out of my garden. The drunken fools drink until the drown. Party on.
I only buy wild seafood, not farm-raised. Farm raised freaks me out. No other reason.
I only buy grass-fed, organic beef. Not only does grass fed beef taste better, I like the idea of the cow meandering through a pasture rather than laying in mud and dung tied to a post eating cornmeal.
With a little planning remove convenience foods from your life and prepare homemade nutritious and delicious meals for yourself and your family all week long.
Enjoy!
Time to get back to basics. Break out the formula and plan the menu.
Here is my plan for the coming week. I'll do my best to post my menus weekly.
Nothing fancy but nothing short of delicious. Enjoy!
Sunday: Greek Easter Bon Appetit April 2011 + a spinach, feta, red onion and strawberry salad with basalmic vinagrette (delicious!) and Pastierra - a traditional Italian Wheatberry Ricotta Custard Pie
Monday: Lentil Soup with Cornbread and Arugula Salad with Lemon/Olive Oil dressing
Tuesday: Lemon Garlic Grilled Chicken with Brown Rice and Artichokes (from the garden)
Wednesday: Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs
Thursday: Ham and Yams, cabbage salad
Friday: Shrimp Tacos
Saturday: Hamburgers
On my Soap Box:
I'm an avid organic gardener. I have a 300 s.f. vegetable garden and I worm compost. I like dirt. I like good bugs. I love preparing meals from my garden. With this said, I have waged war against garden slugs, one beer at a time. Slugs mowed down so much of my garden this past week. Fortunately they love beer, I love slugs out of my garden. The drunken fools drink until the drown. Party on.
I only buy wild seafood, not farm-raised. Farm raised freaks me out. No other reason.
I only buy grass-fed, organic beef. Not only does grass fed beef taste better, I like the idea of the cow meandering through a pasture rather than laying in mud and dung tied to a post eating cornmeal.
With a little planning remove convenience foods from your life and prepare homemade nutritious and delicious meals for yourself and your family all week long.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Secret Formulas
Mwah-ha-ha! I have a secret formula!
Planning is the key ingredient to good meals all week long.
This formula is my guide for weekly menu planning.
2 fish/seafood
1 vegetarian
1 chicken
1 pasta
1 soup
1 beef or pork
This week:
Sunday - Pork Ribs and potatoes
Monday - Smoked Salmon Tortellini & Aspargus Alfredo
Tuesday - Shrimp & Vegetable Stirfry with pork gyoza (trader joes) and rice
Wednesday - Lentil Vegetable Soup + Cheese Quesadillas
Thursday - Spaghetti & Turkey Meatballs, Salad
Friday - Bean & Cheese Burritos Wet w/Steamed Veggies
Saturday - Chicken + Root Vegetables
A lot of overlap. My soup this week could also be my vegetarian meal; the smoked salmon tortellini could be my pasta but I counted it as a fish.
Sunday and Monday my kids loved each meal, asparagus included. Tuesday, my youngest ate the gyoza and rice but wouldn't touch the stirfry. Everyone else loved the stirfry...including all of its 9 veggies! Even the photo looks delicious! Tonight, I pureed the lentil soup on a recommendation from a friend and the kids loved it! 7 vegetables! Woo! I usually make cornbread with lentil soup but I was pressed for time and quesadillas a quick fix for the kids who dipped their quesadillas in their soup! Whatever works! I accomodate my kids with each meal. I don't force my kids to clear their plates but they are required to try everything. I think it is important that they experience food beyond "kid food".
Using my formula, I prefer to plan a month at a time. I don't have a fancy meal calendar, I grab a blank sheet of paper, write the days of the week on top, make a calendar grid and start filling it in. If I get the idea from a magazine or cookbook, I list the source and page number. I start with whatever I have in the freezer or on hand, then I make my grocery list. This way I don't over buy, things don't sit on the shelf or in the freezer for months on end and I manage to my food budget.
I make most everything homemade, from scratch. That isn't to say my freezer isn't full of corn dogs, pizza rolls, pizzas, dinosaur chicken and other things delicious that fill in when it's date night or girls night out and dad is in charge.
Plan ahead and make the food you love. Enjoy!
Planning is the key ingredient to good meals all week long.
This formula is my guide for weekly menu planning.
2 fish/seafood
1 vegetarian
1 chicken
1 pasta
1 soup
1 beef or pork
This week:
Sunday - Pork Ribs and potatoes
Monday - Smoked Salmon Tortellini & Aspargus Alfredo
Tuesday - Shrimp & Vegetable Stirfry with pork gyoza (trader joes) and rice
Wednesday - Lentil Vegetable Soup + Cheese Quesadillas
Thursday - Spaghetti & Turkey Meatballs, Salad
Friday - Bean & Cheese Burritos Wet w/Steamed Veggies
Saturday - Chicken + Root Vegetables
A lot of overlap. My soup this week could also be my vegetarian meal; the smoked salmon tortellini could be my pasta but I counted it as a fish.
Sunday and Monday my kids loved each meal, asparagus included. Tuesday, my youngest ate the gyoza and rice but wouldn't touch the stirfry. Everyone else loved the stirfry...including all of its 9 veggies! Even the photo looks delicious! Tonight, I pureed the lentil soup on a recommendation from a friend and the kids loved it! 7 vegetables! Woo! I usually make cornbread with lentil soup but I was pressed for time and quesadillas a quick fix for the kids who dipped their quesadillas in their soup! Whatever works! I accomodate my kids with each meal. I don't force my kids to clear their plates but they are required to try everything. I think it is important that they experience food beyond "kid food".
Using my formula, I prefer to plan a month at a time. I don't have a fancy meal calendar, I grab a blank sheet of paper, write the days of the week on top, make a calendar grid and start filling it in. If I get the idea from a magazine or cookbook, I list the source and page number. I start with whatever I have in the freezer or on hand, then I make my grocery list. This way I don't over buy, things don't sit on the shelf or in the freezer for months on end and I manage to my food budget.
I make most everything homemade, from scratch. That isn't to say my freezer isn't full of corn dogs, pizza rolls, pizzas, dinosaur chicken and other things delicious that fill in when it's date night or girls night out and dad is in charge.
Plan ahead and make the food you love. Enjoy!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Funky Chicken & Alligator Tongues: An Introduction
Crappuccino is the phrase of the moment in our house.
Crappuccino is the word my boys have invented to sidestep reprimand for saying "crap" which has been banned due to overuse.
Our family is "normal" - as normal goes. A family of 6 in North Orange County, California. A hard working mom and dad, an awesome 16-year old girl and three rambunctious boys ages 10, 7 and 5.
Feeding this brood is always a challenge. My husband and I agree, we want to have the best, healthiest food as least expensive as possible. The Fantastic Four want all the junk, if it is seen on TV the better, no matter the cost.
Luckily and thankfully, I love to cook. I love to read cookbooks, magazines about food and ponder recipes. I am not one to sugar coat anything in my life, let alone disguise food to get my kids to eat it. However, I have recently come to appreciate my mother's wisdom - another mother of 4 - who taught me that by simply renaming the obvious, the original option sounds pretty good. For example - it doesn't matter what you say you are making for dinner, the kids will complain. "Again?" "Yuck!" "I'm not eating!" are all expected responses. My mother, in response to our negative reaction to pork chops, "AGAIN?!", said, oh, my mistake, we're having alligator tongues. WHAT!?!?!? Well, she said, we could have alligator tongues or pork chops - what will it be? Hands down, pork chops. I relived this moment with my children recently and they, though intrigued by alligator tongues voted for pork chops.
Roast chicken has become funky chicken for the same reason. Funky chicken is waaaaay more fun than another bird from the oven.
Tonight I told the kids we were having barbecue ribs, baked potatoes and steamed broccoli. Nothing short of delicious. In the midst of the cheers (yes, we cheer for our favorite meals) our oldest son added - may we have cheese and bacon for the potatoes too? Variation is the spice of life. Yes son, we may.
With that, welcome to my blog - Funky Chicken & Alligator Tongues.
Though I work full time between two jobs, I serve up a homecooked meal every night, with the hope that we will all enjoy the meal together. With our crazy schedules this doesn't always happen but most nights it works.
A lot of friends have asked for my recipes, what's for dinner and wonder what I could possibly cook all the time. I'm a planner. A chronic planner. My dinner menu is planned weeks, if not a month, in advance. I know what to buy, I know what I'm cooking and the family knows what will be on the table come dinner time. I am flexible and if it's 85+degrees outside, I will switch the menu around so we're grilling and not turning on the oven.
This blog is to share my planning, my recipes and the fun my family has at the dinner table.
Crappuccino won't be on the menu, I promise.
Crappuccino is the word my boys have invented to sidestep reprimand for saying "crap" which has been banned due to overuse.
Our family is "normal" - as normal goes. A family of 6 in North Orange County, California. A hard working mom and dad, an awesome 16-year old girl and three rambunctious boys ages 10, 7 and 5.
Feeding this brood is always a challenge. My husband and I agree, we want to have the best, healthiest food as least expensive as possible. The Fantastic Four want all the junk, if it is seen on TV the better, no matter the cost.
Luckily and thankfully, I love to cook. I love to read cookbooks, magazines about food and ponder recipes. I am not one to sugar coat anything in my life, let alone disguise food to get my kids to eat it. However, I have recently come to appreciate my mother's wisdom - another mother of 4 - who taught me that by simply renaming the obvious, the original option sounds pretty good. For example - it doesn't matter what you say you are making for dinner, the kids will complain. "Again?" "Yuck!" "I'm not eating!" are all expected responses. My mother, in response to our negative reaction to pork chops, "AGAIN?!", said, oh, my mistake, we're having alligator tongues. WHAT!?!?!? Well, she said, we could have alligator tongues or pork chops - what will it be? Hands down, pork chops. I relived this moment with my children recently and they, though intrigued by alligator tongues voted for pork chops.
Roast chicken has become funky chicken for the same reason. Funky chicken is waaaaay more fun than another bird from the oven.
Tonight I told the kids we were having barbecue ribs, baked potatoes and steamed broccoli. Nothing short of delicious. In the midst of the cheers (yes, we cheer for our favorite meals) our oldest son added - may we have cheese and bacon for the potatoes too? Variation is the spice of life. Yes son, we may.
With that, welcome to my blog - Funky Chicken & Alligator Tongues.
Though I work full time between two jobs, I serve up a homecooked meal every night, with the hope that we will all enjoy the meal together. With our crazy schedules this doesn't always happen but most nights it works.
A lot of friends have asked for my recipes, what's for dinner and wonder what I could possibly cook all the time. I'm a planner. A chronic planner. My dinner menu is planned weeks, if not a month, in advance. I know what to buy, I know what I'm cooking and the family knows what will be on the table come dinner time. I am flexible and if it's 85+degrees outside, I will switch the menu around so we're grilling and not turning on the oven.
This blog is to share my planning, my recipes and the fun my family has at the dinner table.
Crappuccino won't be on the menu, I promise.
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